Papua New Guinea legit makes some great sodas, such as GoGo Cola and the Gold Spot range. Therefore when I saw K-One Cola I quite simply had to give it the full cola quest treatment.
So, how was it? Well there is no point dancing around the fact that it was pretty god damned bad. But as with everything the devil is in the detail…
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What is K-One Cola
K-One Cola is one of those mystery budget brands that floats around the fringes of the Papua New Guinea soda scene. It is not made by Coca-Cola Amatil or any of the big guns, but rather a smaller local bottling outfit that churns out generic soft drinks for the masses.
There is no grand backstory, no cool branding, no history of legendary advertising campaigns. Instead, it is the kind of cola that exists purely to fill shelf space and hit a price point. Think of it as the absolute bargain basement player in the PNG soda hierarchy, a drink made simply because cola is expected, not because anyone has put love or craft into it.
Where can you buy K-One Cola
You can find K-One Cola pretty much anywhere in Papua New Guinea, particularly in supermarkets and smaller trade stores. It usually sits near the bottom row of the fridge, a spot reserved for drinks no one really wants but will buy because they are cheap. And cheap it is, at just 2 Kina a bottle, which is about as low as you can go for a branded fizzy drink in PNG.
That price is literally the sole reason people buy it. This is the budget cola, the drink of last resort when payday has not arrived yet or when you just need some sugar and bubbles without splashing out for GoGo or Coke. In short, it is accessible, plentiful, and priced for survival rather than enjoyment.
#ColaQuest K-One
So, how does K-One come in the cola quest challenge? Well there is no point beating around the Shepherds Bush here! It is pretty shit reminding me of those off-brand tepid colas of my 80’s youth, such as from Tesco, or Safeway. It is sweet, but while tasting almost diet like, as well as lacking fizz. This is very much in contrast to GoGo Cola of PNG, which is pretty good.
And as for the booze test I used K-One to chase soju, but it was so rank I swapped to GoGo for some sips. As well as just preferring no mixer if K-One was the option. I am sure I have had worse, but I can’t remember me for when that was. Overall K-One gets rotten eggs score of 3/10. FOR SHAME!
So, yeah PNG bottles its own Coke, Pepsi and the aforementioned GoGo meaning things gotta be pretty bad if you end up drinking this shit.
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